Offa robbery: Saraki alleges persecution after 18 charges dropped
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Punch
Former Nigerian Senate President Bukola Saraki says Kwara State is using the 2018 Offa robbery case to persecute him ahead of the 2027 elections. According to his office, the dropped charges, relating to armed robbery, the murder of police officers and possession of weapons, show a lack of evidence, while four counts remain against him and former governor Abdulfatah Ahmed, Punch reports.
Former Nigerian Senate President Bukola Saraki accuses the Kwara State government of abusing the judicial process and of using the 2018 Offa bank robbery case to persecute him and former governor Abdulfatah Ahmed. In a statement issued on Monday in Abuja by his press office, headed by Yusuph Olaniyonu, he sees this as proof that the accusations lacked credible evidence. He accuses the administration of Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of seeking to tarnish his reputation ahead of the 2027 general elections.
Kwara State has filed an amended indictment that reduces the counts against Saraki, Ahmed and two former aides, Yusuf Abdulwahab and Alabi Olalekan, from 20 to four. According to Saraki, the charges of armed robbery, murder of police officers and unlawful possession of firearms have been dropped. The remaining counts are criminal conspiracy, membership of a gang of thieves and two counts linked to concealing a vehicle used for unlawful purposes. He considers the amendment "ridiculous" and says the remaining charges will be challenged in court.
The controversy flared up again when Saheed Popoola, a former APC official in Kwara and now the PDP’s Senate candidate for Kwara South, admitted to having played a leading role in the campaign linking Saraki to the robbery, before the defeat of Saraki’s political structure in 2019. He said so on Sunday at the palace of the Olofa of Offa, during Saraki’s political tour.
This reaction follows the dropping of 18 charges in the Offa case, reported on 8 November.
